


"Green"

by narikalen



Category: Haven - Fandom
Genre: Case Fic, Gen, No Spoilers, Season/Series 01, Set in Season 1/2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-16
Updated: 2016-02-16
Packaged: 2018-05-21 00:46:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6032062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/narikalen/pseuds/narikalen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>She was running, running fast. It was dark around her, and she could barely see where she was going. She stumbled, felt branches catch and rip at her clothes. She turned around, staring fearfully back behind her. She couldn’t see it, but she could hear it, still following her, crashing through the brambles. She didn’t have much time.</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	"Green"

**Author's Note:**

> Uh-betaed, written for mini_Nanowrimo 2015.

_She was running, running fast. It was dark around her, and she could barely see where she was going. She stumbled, felt branches catch and rip at her clothes. She turned around, staring fearfully back behind her. She couldn’t see it, but she could hear it, still following her, crashing through the brambles. She didn’t have much time._

_She turned forward again, and began scrambling up the steep incline. A bone-chilling howl split the air behind her, unlike any animal she’d ever heard. It spurred her on faster, faster, and she crested the top of the ridge, running blindly into whatever was ahead._

_The crunching of branches and twigs behind her grew louder and closer. She could almost hear its breath, panting hard as it ran. She didn’t dare turn her head to look, she had to keep running, faster, towards the road. If she could get to the road, if she could get help… she kept going, feeling the blood slide down her skin from and scratches she’d picked up. But she couldn’t stop, had to keep running, had to get away._

_The sounds behind her grew fainter, and she risked a glance over her shoulder. Was it falling behind? Had it given up its chase? She couldn’t see it. She couldn’t see it, but she could see the woods spread out behind and beneath her, dark and ominous. And… and she could see the shape of it, even if she couldn’t see it, she could see the shape it left behind as it barrelled through the trees, breaking branches and trampling the undergrowth._

_She turned around again, and ran harder, harder. She was terrified, so scared of what was happening. What was it? Why couldn’t she see it? There, up ahead! In the faint moonlight, she could see the silver strip of asphalt in front of her, and, bless, hear the rumble of an engine. She pumped her legs harder, heedless of the scratches the brambles drew on her. She was almost there, so close!_

_And out of nowhere, she was on the ground, a heavy weight on her back. She felt claws, sharp and deep, gouge into her back, tearing her shirt. That sick ripping sound was her flesh. A scream bubbled out of her throat, unconscious, and pain ripped through her body. She tried to roll, to throw it off, and only succeeded in exposing her front to the thing._

_She couldn’t see it, there was nothing there! Nothing in front of her, but she could feel it, the weight of it. She could smell it, a rancid, fetid smell, of damp and blood and rotting. She threw her arms over the face, and felt it grab hold in its massive jaws. The crunch of her bone made her scream again, and she watched, horrified, as nothing seemingly ripped her arm off at the joint. She couldn’t see it, she didn’t see anything but the woods and the trees and the forest. A heavy paw swiped down, scraping from temple, through eye and cheek and chin. A heavy crack as her neck snapped. And no more._

\--

“What’ve we got here?” Audrey asked, as she climbed up the hill.

Nathan spared her a glance, then went back to examining the scene in front of him. “Sandra Poole. Looks like she got ripped apart by an animal, claw and teeth marks everywhere. The amount of blood might mean she was still alive for most of the attack.” He crouched lower for a closer look. “But this isn’t like any animal I’ve seen around here; claw marks are too deep and spaced wide apart. And I don’t know of any animal big enough in these woods to rip an arm clear off. Biggest thing we’ve got here are coyotes. No bears in these parts of the woods.” He frowned, then gestured a few feet away where the severed arm lay. “And even then, no bear can do that. Looks like it was torn off, not gnawed.”

Audrey shivered. The young woman’s body was a canvas of bloody flesh, barely recognizable as human. “You think it’s the Troubles?”

Nathan nodded. “That, or we’ve got a massive wild beast running around these woods that no one knew about. It’s too early to tell, Parker. Not everything around here is related to the Troubles.” He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye before he stood up again, and looked down at the body. “Whatever it is, we need to find it, and fast. Getting ripped apart like that is a bad way to go. And if it’s an animal out there hunting people, we need to put it down. Too many campers and hikers in this area for it to be safe.”

Audrey nodded in agreement. “Looks like she tried to run. There’s a bunch of trampled bushes this way. But where did the thing go after? There’s no trail leading away. Do you think it headed back in the same direction?” She began following the flattened bush trail, Nathan close behind her. “Is that usual?”

“Sometimes. If it’s got a den nearby, it might have headed back. But it’s unlikely. Looking at the way the path is shaped, it’s pretty clear it was one way.” He slid in front of her as they crested the ridge. “Better let me lead. I know these woods better than you do; the Chief and I use to go hunting here.” For a while they walked in silence, both engrossed in examining the trail.

“It’s weird.” Audrey eventually broke the silence. “I can see her footprints, and smears of blood, probably from her hands when she got scratched or fell down. But other than the broken sticks, I don’t see any fur or anything caught in the branches. If this animal is as big as this trail, wouldn’t you think there’d be something, anything, left behind?”

“Yeah, it’s a little weird, but not too unusual. Sometimes, that just happens. You’re not going to always find a convenient stray piece of fur hanging off every branch, Parker.” Nathan’s gait sped up a little as they saw a clearing up ahead. “There, that’s probably where she started.”

They walked into the small clearing, noting the camping gear and the remains of a small fire. There was a roasting stick with some sort of completely charred animal left on it. “That was probably dinner. The smell might be what attracted whatever it was.” Nathan walked towards the tent. “Looks like she was camping alone.”

“That’s kind of unusual, isn’t it? I mean, most young women wouldn’t be out here in the woods by themselves. Besides, I’ve met Sandra. She’s not really the loner type; I’m surprised she’d want to be out here alone.” Audrey stated. “Not unless something was really bothering her.”

Nathan nodded. “Yeah. But we can figure out what she was doing out here later. We need to find that animal first.” He looked over at Audrey. “Look around the edges; animal that big wouldn’t be able to make it into the clearing without leaving some sort of a track.”

They scanned the perimeter, but aside from the small trail Sandra made as she came to the clearing, and the large trail left by the predator, there was nothing to be found. “That’s not possible.” Nathan said. “There has to be something. An animal that size? Doesn’t just come out of nowhere.”

“Maybe it did.” Audrey replied, leaning down near the tent. “Come here, and take a look at this.”

Nathan walked over to her and crouched down to look. He reached over with a stick, flipping through the small pile of debris. “Looks like something was burnt to ash here.” His stick struck something hard in the pile, and he fished it out. “A necklace?”

“A pendant.” confirmed Audrey. “And it’s not burnt at all.” Her face looked grim as she declared. “This is looking less and less like an animal attack, and more and more like the Troubles.”

Nathan nodded his agreement. “Yeah. We’ll need to figure out what’s causing it, and what it had to do with Sandra. Do you think it was her?”

“Well, she did just break up with Jason… that could’ve been traumatic I guess, but I’m pretty sure she was the one who did the dumping. Besides, most troubles don’t kill the Troubled person; it affects their surroundings or the ones they love. Maybe we should go talk to Jason?” Audrey started heading back on the trail the way they came. “He might be causing this, lashing out at people who hurt him.”

Nathan followed her onto the trail, thinking about Jason Blackborne. “Maybe. But he’s kind of a player; I’m not sure that she would’ve had that much of an effect on him.” He nearly ran into Audrey as she stopped in the middle of the tracks.

“How do you know that?”

“Small town, Parker. Everybody knows Jason, especially the girls he goes with.”

“Goes with? Really, Nathan? What is this, the fifties?”

Nathan flushed, but nudged her forward to keep her walking. “Like I said, he’s a player. He’s probably already got another date lined up tonight, even though they just broke up a few days ago. That wouldn’t surprise me. But he’s still the best lead we’ve got right now, so let’s go have a chat with our Don Juan.”

\--

They found Jason Blackborne at the local coffee shop, chatting up another girl. She looked up to see them crowding up behind him, and, like a smart lady, made herself scarce.

“Hey Jason. I can see you’re not too broken up about Sandra there.” Audrey said, leaning against the edge of the table.

Jason shrugged. “I can’t help it if I’m a ladies man,” he replied. “Sandra didn’t like that other girls looked at me, even if I never done anything about it. It’s not my fault I’m hot.” He leaned back in his chair, appearing completely nonchalant. “Sure, I was a bit sad when she broke up with me, but we all knew what we were in for. There’s no way it would’ve lasted much longer anyways; some girls are just too possessive, you dig me?”

Nathan glared at him, then cast his glare over the rest of the shop. “No, I don’t ‘dig’ you. And we’re not talking about Sandra breaking up with you; we’re talking about her dead body, ripped to shreds, alone in the woods. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?”

Jason sat up abruptly. “Woah woah woah. What? Sandra’s dead? Naw, man, that’s messed up! I was just talking to her yesterday! She threw a cup at my head! But man, I didn’t do nothing to her. I mean, I wasn’t happy that she tried to kill me, sure, but I get it man. Girls, they get jealous, that’s all. I know she didn’t mean it. Aw, man. I don’t know nothing about her being dead though. I swear!”

Audrey cast a critical eye on him. “Where were you last night?”

“I was out, drinking at the Grey Gull man. There were a ton of people there; I mean, I wasn’t with anybody, but I’m sure somebody must’ve seen me. And then I went home. And I was not alone, you get me? I don’t know the girl’s name, but she was blond, stacked and… I dunno man. Hot. I made her breakfast this morning, ‘cuz I’m a gentleman like that. I didn’t do nothing to Sandra.”

\--

Audrey heaved a sigh as she opened the door to the truck. “Dead end. At least four people saw Jason here from 8pm until he left around 1am. Looks like you were right about him being a bit of a player. Back to square one.”

Nathan put the truck in gear and backed out of the Grey Gull’s parking lot. “I told you, I wasn't holding out much hope; Jason’s not the kind of guy who gets traumatized by his girlfriend leaving him. Let's go back out to the park, see if anyone else has turned up who saw or heard something. We still can't discount a wild animal attack, although it doesn't look like any animal I've ever seen.”

Audrey glanced over at Nathan’s profile. “The likelihood that it's some unknown wild animal here? In Haven?”

Nathan’s face was grim against the light of the window. “Low to none.”

\--

Pulling up to the park, Nathan and Audrey noticed an uptick in the number of people hanging around. “Looks like word got out,” Nathan muttered. “Bunch of gawkers, here to look at the tragedy.”

Audrey grinned.”You never know; maybe somebody saw something. No detail too insignificant and all that.”

Nathan turned his grumpy look on her. “Fine. You interview the onlookers, I'll go check out the crime scene again. Need to talk to the park ranger too; she went AWOL this morning after calling it in.”

Audrey raised an eyebrow. “Suspicious?”

“No, probably went to see if she can track the animal. Jo’s the sort who loves the park; wouldn't let anything jeopardize it, and a vicious animal going around attacking folks would definitely jeopardize things.”

Audrey nodded. “Okay, you go find the ranger. I'll see if I can rustle up anything from the crowd.”

Nathan started up the trail, intent on getting back to the crime scene. Audrey turned around and sighed, surveying the crowd. Although she tried to make the best of it to Nathan, she knew that the likelihood of her finding out anything from the random bystanders were slim. Still, she had to at least try. Taking a deep breath and pushing back her shoulders, Audrey moved to the crowd.

\--

Nathan followed the trodden dirt path that led to the ranger’s hut. She had left in quick order after bringing him out to the crime scene. Nathan didn't blame her; the body had been in pretty bad shape and she'd probably never seen anything like that before. Knocking on the door jamb, he stuck his head through the open doorway. Jo sat at her desk, diligently typing away at her old desktop computer, one hand playing with her collar.

“How're you holding up?” he asked as he walked in.

Jo glanced up from her work, and gave a shrug. “Okay, I guess. Doesn't look like any of the local wildlife was bothered; I haven't noticed any shift in behaviour from the local animals. Actually, it's been pretty good for the park since there’ve been a lot fewer folks willing to go out on the trails.”

Nathan gave her an odd look. “That's probably a good thing, given that we don't know what kind of animal attacked Sandra. But I mostly meant you; how're you holding up under the circumstances? I know it couldn't be easy, finding her like that.”

Jo shrugged again, her attention drifting back to the computer screen before her. “Aside from the butt load of paperwork I have to do now, I'm fine. Anyway, what can I do for you?”

Giving a small frown, Nathan shook his head. “I was just wondering if you'd seen any other signs of whatever it was that killed the woman. Any odd animal trails, droppings, anything that would let us know what kind of animal did this.”

Jo raised her eyebrow at Nathan. “Why does it matter to you? You're the sheriff, not wild game control. What, exactly, would you do if I told you I found a bear, or a bobcat or something? It's not exactly your jurisdiction. Not that it really matters; I haven't seen any signs of large predators around here. We might get the occasional coyote, but bigger animals don't tend to come this close to the coast. Besides, no animal I've ever seen or heard of would rip a woman apart like that.” She turned back to her computer screen when she finished speaking, a clear dismissal of Nathan.

Nathan shook his head again. “Like you said, I'm the sheriff. If some animal is killing people out here, it's my business, one way or another. But I'll trust your expertise on this one, for now. Let me know if anything comes up.” With a grunt of assent from Jo, Nathan made his way back out towards the parking lot.

He met up with Audrey just as she was finishing up with the last of the witness statements. “Parker, anything?”

Audrey glanced up at him, and shook her head no. “No luck. Nobody was around last night when the attack happened,and nobody has heard or seen anything since. If it was an animal, it's laying low for now, and if it's the Troubles, it may have settled down. How about you, any luck with the park ranger?”

“Not really. She didn't seem too shook up about it though, was more focused on keeping the park preserved than the people using it. Said she hadn't seen or heard anything out of place though.”

Getting into the cab of the truck, Audrey looked over at Nathan. “People are a little nervous, a little scared. Apparently, word got out that there's some sort of vicious animal attacking people in the woods. We got a couple avid hunters who’re talking about hunting it down, whatever it is.”

Nathan shrugged as he started the car. “Not much we can do about that; if it really is a wild animal, the hunters can take care of it. Me? I'd rather we check out that necklace you found at the scene, maybe follow up on some other leads. My gut says it's the Troubles.”

\--

Gloria moved around the morgue with an easy sort of grace, with a lot more agility than someone her age normally displayed. Here, she was in her element. As Nathan and Audrey walked through the doors, she finished up with the body of the young woman, covering up the parts spread out over her slab.

“Anything interesting for us?” Audrey asked.

Gloria fixed her with an unimpressed stare. “You brought me a body in pieces. What, exactly, do you expect me to say?” Flipping open her chart, she walked over to the detectives. “Sandra Poole, 26, torn apart by God knows what. Deep gashes across her back and thighs, disembowelled through her back. Spine ripped clean through, organs scattered throughout. Claws and teeth, but no missing parts.”

Audrey shuddered as Nathan looked on, impassive. “So she was attacked from behind, probably running away. No missing parts means… What, exactly?”

“No missing parts, as in whatever it was that killed her, didn't try to eat her.”

“I thought humans were the only animals that hunted for sport,” Audrey said.

“Not strictly true. Cats do to; bobcats and cougars leave bits of animal laying around. But their prey tends to be much smaller than a full grown person, and they usually eat at least some of what they kill. Whatever killed this poor girl, didn't bother.” Closing her charts, Gloria gave Nathan a meaningful look. “Whatever it was, you'd better find it and take care of it. Fast.”

Nathan nodded. “Thanks Gloria, that helps us a lot. We've got some leads we need to go check out. Before we go though, I think a piece of evidence might have made its way here with the body; a necklace with a pendant attached?”

Gloria nodded, and fetched a small bag. “I thought this might be something, since it wasn't on her neck. Not really Sandra’s style anyways.” She handed the evidence bag over to Audrey. “Good luck.” She watched as the pair turned in tandem and left the morgue, then busied herself with cleaning up and putting away the woman’s remains. Her family would be by to pick her up soon.

\--

_The forest was dark, and the night was dank and cold. It was quiet in the bushes; no signs of the night animals nearby. Moving past some branches, a small blue tent appeared. To the right, the smouldering remains of a fire, surrounded by a small ring of stones. A small canister of gasoline sat near the fire, and a small leak had formed a puddle of liquid that seeped into the ground. Next to the fire, a small, turned over stool rested close to some camp plates and cutlery. Bits of garbage were strewn about, the odd wrapper, an empty can of corn, and many empty bottles of alcohol._

_A snort broke through the silence, a snore from the sleeping form inside the tent. Drifting towards it, magnetic, pulled towards the violator of this natural sanctity. The tent did not belong here, in the quiet of the forest. The blueness of it, offensive even in the low light of the moon. An aberration, all of it, the tent, the fire, the trash. And the man. The man was an aberration, a wrongness here. A low growl formed, growing steadily louder and more menacing, followed by a bright flare of anger._

_With a wild howl, the top of the tent is tornaway, revealing a single man sleeping inside. The man starts at the sound, arms flailing blindly. Wide, terrified eyes stared up, unfocused, and a red, red mouth opened in a scream. He tries to scramble back, but is trapped by his sleeping bag. He beats the air in front of him, searching wildly for whatever is attacking, but his arms meet with emptiness. His head swings wildly from side to side, as if trying to find his attacker._

_With no warning, the man’s head snaps back, and claw marks race across his head and face. He uselessly raises his arms to protect himself as the mad howl grows more crazed, and the man screams again as the flesh from his arms are shredded. He tried to turn, but only becomes more entrapped within his sleeping bag, blood soaking the synthetic material. His shoulder wrenched back violently as his stomach is torn open, and his entrails--_

She sat up with a start, alarm clock blaring on the table beside her bed. She rubbed her face. Another dream. She got up, and began getting ready for her day.

\--

Audrey trailed behind Nathan as they left the morgue. “Whatever killed Sandra, it was vicious. It also doesn't sound like the work of a wild animal. So if it's the Troubles, we need to figure out who it is, and help them control it, fast. Do you think it's possible that it was Sandra’s own trouble, manifesting because she was upset?”

Nathan shook his head. “No, Troubles run in the family, and Sandra’s family has… different troubles. Not something that would tear her to shreds like this. We should look into the necklace instead, see where that takes us. You have it with you?”

“Yeah,” Audrey replied. “I didn't lose it in the time it took for us to walk out of the lab to the truck, Nathan. Have a little faith here.”

A small smirk crossed Nathan’s face as he turned away. When he turned back to Audrey, his face was impassive again. “Let's see it.”

Audrey pulled out the plastic bag and opened it, allowing the necklace to slither into her palm. She dangled it by the chain between Nathan and herself, and squinted as she peered at it. “It's got some good weight to it, probably expensive. The pendant looks like a silver leaf, one of those dipped leaves maybe? I don't see any engravings on it though.”

Nathan was quiet, staring at Audrey as she examined the necklace. He quickly shifted his gaze back down to the pendant when she looked up, barely missing being caught out. “No engravings, no maker’s mark or anything like that either. We can take it to the jewellery store in town, but the necklace is pretty plain.”

Audrey nodded her agreement, and slid the necklace back into the bag before stowing it into the evidence trunk in the back of the truck. As she turned around to climb in, Nathan’s phone started to ring.

“Wuornos. Yeah, she's with me. In town, outside the morgue. Okay. Okay. Where? We'll be right there.” Nathan shut his phone and returned it to his pocket as Audrey raised a quizzical eyebrow at him. “We've got another attack.”

\--

Audrey trudged through the dense forest behind Nathan, huffing a little from the hike. “How far out is this one?” she asked, puffing a piece of stray hair off her forehead.

“Pretty far up the trail. A camper, from the sounds of it. Probably didn't know about the recall or the first attack either, or else he probably would've come back in.” Nathan cleared a branch out of the way, glancing back behind himself. “Don't worry, city girl. We're almost there.” He pushed ahead a little more, and trail began to widen slightly. Then he took a sharp turn and disappeared.

Audrey started in surprise. “Nathan? Nathan?!”

Nathan's head poked back out between the trees just around the bend. “What?”

Audrey hurried up the path. “Just lost you for a moment. Since we don't know how this Trouble works, just wanted to… check.”

Nathan gave her a small grin. “What, did you get a little worried I'd leave you all alone in the middle of the Maine woods?” Then his expression turned serious. “Besides, we’re on a case right now. Need to stay focused. Come on, it's not much further.”

Audrey gave a put upon sigh and followed Nathan further up the trail. Walking into the clearing, they saw the park ranger puttering around a torn tent, fiddling with the edge of her sleeve, a thoughtful expression on her face. “Jo?”

The ranger turned and noticed them, waving them over. “He's over here,” she said, looking down past the tent. Nathan walked over to her, as Audrey paused, puzzled. She toed the ground with the tip of her boot, and then bent down to retrieve something shiny in the dirt. Straightening up again, she hurried over to Nathan, who was just turning to look for her.

“Know who it is?” Nathan asked.

Jo rubbed her forehead and shook her head. “Don't recall any campers, or I would've come up for him after the first attack. He probably didn't register with me when he got here, even though he was suppose to,” she muttered.

Audrey gave her a strange look. Nathan caught her look, and raised an eyebrow at her. She shrugged, and turned her attention back to Jo. “So, did you notice anything strange or unusual as you were doing your rounds? Anything out of place, anyone where they shouldn't be?”

Jo levelled a serious look at her. “I find out of place things all the time. Garbage that hikers leave behind, broken branches and dug up ground that campers don't care about, empty beer cans cutting up creatures. Out of control fires lit with no regard for the fire ban, whole sections of the forest lost. But no. Nothing out of place.”

Nathan gave her a long look, and she glanced away. “I'm heading back to my office. Gotta make sure that no one else comes up this way, least ways until whatever is attacking folks gets caught.”

Audrey watched as she walked away. “Is it just me, or did she seem… oddly reluctant to help? Or at least, oddly hostile towards the dead campers?”

Nathan nodded in agreement. “Something is up with her. Let's take a look at this body, and then we can do some background on her. Gloria will be coming up soon, and she hates when we tramp around her bodies.”

Audrey grinned. Then her face abruptly fell as she surveyed the scene more closely. Like the first attack, the victim’s body had been torn apart. The difference was, this man hadn't gotten a chance to run. “Looks like the tent was ripped right off above him, and he was caught in his sleeping bag. Defensive wounds on his arms, and whatever it was clawed at his face as well. And look, he's disemboweled too. What do you wanna bet that he's not eaten either?”

Nathan frowned. “I'm no expert, but the claw marks look a lot like Sandra’s. The MO makes it look like we might be dealing with the same Trouble, and two unrelated dead campers makes it likely that neither was the Troubled person.”

“And look at this,” Audrey added. “I found this half buried in the dirt over by the edge of the campsite. Concealed, just like the necklace.” She brandished a silver chain bracelet, complete with dangling charms. “Two pieces of silver jewellery, concealed near both victims… doesn't seem like a coincidence to me.”

“Does it have any markings on it? Anything that can tell us where it came from or who it belongs to?” Nathan asked as he moved to stand beside her.

“No, but… it looks like it has some charms on it.” Audrey squinted harder at it. “It looks like a little acorn, maybe? A small leaf, a tree, a bear. Very nature-y. No name, but whoever it belonged to must like the outdoors a lot. All looks like silver too, which means it isn't a cheap trinket. Whoever lost this must be missing it.”

“So you think the jewellery belongs to the Troubled person, and that they're, what, dropping it at each of the attacks? Seems a little too convenient.”

Audrey gave him a look. “Nathan. Weren't you the one who told me that ‘Sometimes, that just happens’? Maybe they're, I don't know, transferring the monster or whatever it is that's killing people or something. We haven't seen any signs of actual humans around the attacks, right? So whoever’s Trouble this is might not even be at the scenes.”

Nathan stared at her for a moment before replying. “That's something to look into. So you think that this Trouble, whoever's causing it, is just, what, manifesting? Then how do you explain the jewellery?”

Audrey frowned in thought. “I can't, not yet. But I've learned to trust my gut, and my gut is telling me that somehow, the jewellery is connected to the Trouble. Is there anyone who's family has some kind of animal or monster Trouble? If the Troubles run in families, that seems like the easiest way to track it down.”

“I've thought of that, but people don't exactly go around advertising their Troubles. I only know of two animal Troubles, and neither of them could do this kind of damage. One of them talks to animals, which, by the way, seem perpetually hungry and only talk about food, and the other shifts into birds, which wouldn't cause this kind of damage. We can check around, see if anyone has any family stories about monsters or beasts killing people.” Nathan stood up and headed back towards the trail.

Audrey followed close behind, thinking about the case. “Maybe I'll check with Vince and Dave, see if there's anything in the archive that mentions this kind of Trouble from 27 years ago. Kind of odd, that they aren't here covering this, actually.”

Nathan shrugged as he forged ahead. “Not particularly. The story will still be in the Herald, but it's not like they can publish pictures of these scenes, and the information has been pretty transparent since we wanted to warn people out of these woods. This story, they get to be armchair reporters on.”

“Okay then, let's get going.”

\--

Vince and Dave were squabbling in the office of the Herald as Audrey and Nathan pushed open the doors, but abruptly grew quiet when they noticed the pair. Audrey raised an eyebrow at the sudden silence, but Nathan brushed it aside. “Vince, Dave. We need some information. Do you know anything about a family Trouble that makes animals or monsters, something that can kill?”

“Is this about those animal attacks in the woods?” Vince asked.

“We heard about those,” added Dave. “Really vicious attacks, ripping people up, eating their insides! You think that it's a Trouble? Not some animal?”

“Don't be stupid, Dave,” Vince replied. “If they thought it was an animal, they wouldn't be here, asking us about animal Troubles, now, would they?” Before Dave could protest, Vince continued. “Animal Trouble, animal Trouble. Well, there's the bird Trouble. And the talking to animals Trouble…”

Audrey shook her head. “We considered them, but those are pretty unlikely, since neither of them would be tearing people apart. Maybe it's a location Trouble, related to the land itself?”

Dave shook his head. “I've never heard of any Trouble being tied to a location. Maybe there's something in the archives? I can go take a look.” With that, he heaves himself out of his seat and wanders towards the back of the office.

“Do you have any other leads on what the Trouble might be? Purely, purely for helping purposes, of course. We can't exactly publish it,” Vince said, interest piqued.

From her pocket, Audrey pulled out two evidence bags. “We found these at the scenes of both attacks, but they seem pretty run-of-the-mill.”

Vince peered closely at the bags. “Doesn't look very old, probably not family heirlooms. But you found them at the scene? Hmmm… I wonder. I wonder.” Without saying anything more to the detectives, Vince walks to the back, calling for his brother.

Nathan and Audrey watched after him. “Well, that was weird,” she said. “Do you think he's got something?”

Vince and Dave both bustled back to the front, jostling each other as they each tried to get to the detectives first. “Well, I found it!” said Dave.

“Yes, but I gave you the idea to look for it!” replied Vince.

“I would've found it eventually!”

“Not without my help!”

Audrey put two fingers in her mouth and whistled. The shrill sound brought the two arguing men to a halt. “I take it you found something for us?”

Vince and Dave gave each other a meaningful look. “Yes, we did,” started Vince.

“But it wasn't what you asked us to look for!” Dave butted in. Vince glared at his brother, but let him continue. Dave beamed as he said, “There wasn't any stories about vicious animals tearing people apart, but we did find some about a woman who claimed to do astral projections.” He stopped and beamed beatifically at Audrey and Nathan. When he realized the two detectives were still looking at him expectantly, his smile dropped. “Astral projection? You know, spirit walking? Mind going outside of body, bodily not there--”

“We know what it means Dave,” Nathan cut in. “Why is it important?”

Vince bustled in front of Dave. “Because it ties into your clues, your jewellery. See, here, this Trouble? This woman's jewellery kept showing up in places, places she’d never been, but kept dreaming of. And at each of the locations, people reported seeing ghosts, only we don't think they were ghosts, we think they were--”

“The Troubles,” Audrey filled in. She shared a significant look with Nathan, who nodded at her. “But a ghost is hardly the same thing as an animal that attacks and kills people.”

“That's just it!” Dave exclaimed. “The reports, with the ghosts? Apparently, she was able to interact with her surroundings, vandalized a bunch of property, caused thousands of dollars of damage!”

“Wait, so it's corporeal?” Nathan asked.

Vince nodded vigorously. “And at each of the locations, a piece of her jewellery was found. That's how they caught her, you know.”

“Wait,” Audrey interrupted. “They caught her? I thought she was a ghost.” Dave gave her a look and opened his mouth to speak. “An astral projection, I mean,” Audrey said, before Dave could interrupt. “So she was caught there?”

“Not exactly,” Vince hedged. “You see, they caught her using the jewellery she left behind, but she maintained her innocence through the whole thing, and she had a bunch of witnesses that proved it. You see, at least at one of the incidents, she was leading a girl guide group at camp, deep in the woods. She was surrounded by scared little girls and at least two other adults at the time, and they all vouched for her whereabouts that night. They swear she couldn't have sneaked away. And, to top it off, the jewellery that was found at the scene? Was a pendant the girls swore she wore that night.”

“So you think she astrally projected, dropped a piece of jewellery, vandalized some property, and then what, popped back into her body?” Audrey asked. Vince and Dave looked at each other, then turned back to the detectives and nodded in tandem. “Well, alright then. Do you have a name?”

Dave rustled the paper in his hand, searching for the name. “Right, right. Worthington. Amanda Worthington.” He looked up eagerly. “Does the name ring any bells?”

Vince thwapped his brother on the head. “Worthington. As is Jody Worthington!”

Nathan straightened up. “The park ranger.” He gave Audrey a look, and they both turned and left the office of the Herald, leaving the two brothers squabbling behind them about who had been more helpful.

\--

The jeep spit gravel as it slid to a stop in front of the ranger’s office. The sky was just beginning to darken. Nathan took off his seatbelt and moved to open the door when Audrey placed an arresting hand on his arm. He stopped and glanced back at her. “What?”

“When we get in there, maybe let me do the talking,” Audrey said. “I know you know her, but Nathan, she might not even know she's Troubled. And sometimes, you can be a little…” she trailed off.

“What?” Nathan growled. “I can be a little what?”

Audrey looked him in the eye. “Abrupt. You can be very abrupt, and we don't want to spook her. Especially not if she's sending out ghost monsters without even knowing it.”

Nathan glared at her, but nodded his ascent. They both got out of the jeep, and headed into the little cabin. Jo looked up from her desk as the two detectives entered. She raised an eyebrow as she asked, “What? Was there another one?”

“No, there hasn't been another attack. Yet. That's what we came to talk to you about, actually.” Audrey threw a glance at Nathan before looking back at Jo. Taking a deep breath, she continued, “Jo, have you ever heard of the Troubles?”

Jo’s eyes grew slightly wider, before she broke eye contact and looked back down at her papers. “I don't know what you're talking about.”

Audrey’s squinted and walked closer to the desk. “Jo, I think you do. I think you might be--”

“NO!” Jo stood abruptly, scattering papers everywhere. “No! I'm not crazy. They're just stories, just stories that people used to villainize my family, just stupid stories about a crazy old aunt, but that's not me! I wasn't there, those were just dreams, I wasn't anywhere! I, I--”

Jo moved suddenly, rushing past Audrey. Before she could make it to the door, Nathan grabbed her. Eyes wild, she struggled in his grasp, before delivering a powerful elbow to his gut, followed by an elbow to the jaw. Nathan’s head reeled back and he loosened his hold. Sensing an opportunity, Jo made for the door and was gone.

“Nathan!” Audrey cried, hurrying to him.

“Go, get Jo,” he replied. Seeing he was only winded, Audrey stood and ran out the door.

Outside, she looked around. She couldn't see Jo, but took a guess and chose one of the trails. As she crashed through the path, Audrey ran what Jo had said through her mind. A crazy old aunt who might be Troubled, dreams in places she hadn't been, those sounded like they might add up to Amanda Worthington, and an astral projection Trouble that could be potentially lethal.

Audrey came out of the path onto a clearing by the cliff. Jo stood at the edge, staring out into the water. “Jo?” she asked.

Jo turned around, facing Audrey. To the detective, it seemed like the woman's whole demeanour had changed. “Jo?” Audrey asked again, tentatively.

“I always thought she was just crazy. That she was one crazy arsonist who was making up stories about what happened; that's what everybody believed. And then, when I started having the dreams… and the bodies started to appear… you think I'm crazy too. You think that I murdered those people.” Jo seemed to look through Audrey, to something behind her.

“No, I don't think you're crazy, Jo,” Audrey said. She took a step closer, hands held up placatingly. “I think you're Troubled, and that your body really wasn't there. I just want to help.”

The trail rustled down the trail behind Audrey, and she turned, but saw nothing there.

Jo’s face took on a dreamy look. “They deserved it, you know. Trampling through this wilderness, destroying this sacred space. They just, they just don't stop. No one stops, no one listens, they just. Trash. They ruin everything, they burn it down, all down. I had to do it.” Suddenly her eyes cleared, and she looked directly at Audrey. “Do you see? I had to do it, I was just protecting the forest! The forest needed me, and I protected it, and they just wouldn't listen! Just like you're not listening. You're not listening to me.”

“Jo, calm down,” Audrey said. “I'm listening. I'm listening to you, and I hear you. You just want to protect the forest, I get that. But you need to calm down.”

Jo shook her head vehemently. “No. Nobody ever listens to me. Nobody ever listens. That's why. I have to protect the forest. I have to protect the forest from you!” Leaves of the trees and bushes behind Audrey rustled harder, and a deep growl could be heard coming from the woods just before the clearing. Audrey looked back, but couldn't see anything in the growing darkness. She looked back towards Jo, to find the other woman staring straight at her.

“You're just like them. You and your truck and your not listening. But you're listening now. You can hear me now!” Jo’s eyes took on a manic look as she spoke, and the rustling behind Audrey grew louder.

Audrey turned to look behind herself as a loud roar ripped through the air. She got an impression of teeth and fur and claws and darkness, and then a strange emptiness as it seemed to pass right through her. She whirled around and locked eyes with Jo. Jo’s eyes widened in surprise and her mouth formed a small ‘o’ before whatever it was barrelled into her, and they both went over the cliff.

“Jo!” cried Audrey, running to the edge. She stared at the rocky depths below, but couldn't make anything out in the falling darkness.

Behind her, the bushes rustled again, and Audrey spun around. “Audrey?” she heard Nathan call out, before a flashlight beam appeared. “Audrey!”

“Here!” she called back. “Be careful, I'm at the cliff edge.”

Nathan walked up to where Audrey still knelt on the ground. “What happened? Where's Jo?” he asked.

Even though she knew he couldn't really see her in the dimness, Audrey shook head. “She's gone. When I confronted her, she got really upset. She started to say all this stuff about protecting the forest, and how nobody listened to her.” Audrey stopped, looking down. Taking a breath, she continued, “When I tried to calm her down, she got more agitated. She got this look in her eye, and then she looked at me like. Like I was the enemy, Nathan. There was… I don't know. Claws. Teeth. From behind me.”

Startled, Nathan swung the flashlight around the clearing, back towards the forest.

“No, I don't think it's real, Nathan,” Audrey continued. “It's almost like it passed through me. And she looked so surprised… then it hit her and they both went over the edge.”

“So you think it was her?” Nathan asked.

Audrey nodded, even though he couldn't see her. “Yeah, I think it was. The things she was saying, the details she filled in. Sounds like it was a family Trouble. I think she was doing what she thought was right.” She stayed crouched down at the edge, staring into the darkness below.

“It wasn't your fault, Parker,” Nathan said. “It was the Troubles. She tried to kill you with hers, and she failed. She paid the price.”

Audrey sighed, and finally stood up. She turned to face Nathan, saying, “I just wish I could've done more.”

They both stood in silence for a moment; Nathan unsure what to say, and Audrey in contemplation. “C’mon,” she finally said. “Let's go, flashlight-boy. We've got a report to fudge.” She began heading towards the tree line. After a moment, Nathan followed.


End file.
